Appreciative Inquiry at Northern Essex Community College.

Appreciative Inquiry (AI) provides a foundation for much of our work at NECC and with a team of staff and faculty trained in AI, we are committed to providing resources, training and workshops to the college community.

What Is Appreciative Inquiry?

Appreciative Inquiry is an innovative approach to organizational learning. AI is an organization development model for facilitating positive change in human systems, organizations, groups and communities.

The assumption underlying AI is simple; every human system (person/community) has a core of strengths that is often hidden and/or underutilized—what is known as its positive core.

AI searches for and finds the positive core

When the positive core is revealed and tapped into, it provides a sustainable source of positive energy that nourishes personal and organization change.

How Is AI Used at NECC?

You may be interested in using AI to facilitate change for a particular group, develop a team, a department or committee, or you may just want to learn more about how AI principles might work.

Here are some examples of where and how AI may be utilized:

Professional Development

In the Classroom

Workshops

Advisory Boards

Alumni Groups

Academic Master Plan

Team Building

Strategic Planning

New Project Startups

AI Trained Facilitators at NECC

Melba Acevedo

Noemi Custodia-Lora

Jayne Ducharme

Tina Favara

Sharon McManus

Theresa Mullin

Dawna Perez

Kathy Ronaldson

Stephen Russell

Marcy Yeager

Lane Glenn, President

More Information

For more information about Appreciative Inquiry or to request a workshop for your work area, please contact Sharon McManus, Center for Professional Development, at smcmanus@necc.mass.edu or at 978-738-7803.